Resurrection will also be the watchword for Francis, who will suit up this season for the Beijing Ducks and is known throughout China as "Folaoda" ("Big Brother Fo") for when he played with Chinese superstar Yao Ming on the NBA Houston Rockets. [...]

The nine-year NBA veteran, who averaged 19 points a game over his career, has still not arrived in Beijing and is expected in the capital next week after the 32-game season starts.

The signings come after the CBA waived a $60,000 monthly salary limit on foreign players, a move aimed at attracting better talent and in turn generating more fan excitement and injecting new energy into the league.

"The only thing I can say is that Francis' salary is not the highest of the CBA foreign players — he is not even among the top few players," Beijing Ducks official Yuan Zhao told the China Youth Daily of Francis' reported 800,000-dollar contract.